Herbert Wood, Jr.

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Herbert Wood, Jr., 72, of Rochester died Sunday December 30, 2012 at  St. Luke’s Hospital after a long illness. He was the husband of Sandra  A. (Silva) Wood.

Born in Acushnet, son of the late Herbert and Louise (Westgate) Wood,  he lived in Rochester for most of his life.

Mr. Wood was formerly employed as an associate engineer for  Titleist/FootJoy until his retirement.

He was an active member and past treasurer of the Rochester Land  Trust. He was a member of the Downshifters Car Club.

Survivors include his wife; two daughters, Donna M. Wolfe and her  husband David of Dartmouth, and Laurie A. Zell and her husband Brett  of Marion; and three grandchildren, Makena, Quintin, and Westgate.

His Funeral Service will be held on Friday January 4, 2013 at 10 AM at  the Saunders-Dwyer Mattapoisett Home for Funerals, 50 County Rd.,  Route 6, Mattapoisett. Burial will follow in Riverside Cemetery,  Fairhaven. Visiting hours will be Thursday 4-8 PM. For directions and  guestbook, please visit www.saundersdwyer.com.

ORR Indoor Track Strikes Again

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Old Rochester Regional High School indoor track and field team took first in most of the events of the meet held at Greater New Bedford Regional Vocational Technical High School on Monday, December 31.  ORR was in competition against several area high schools including GNB and Fairhaven High School.  In the races, the ORR girls took first place in the 50 HH, 50 D, 600M, 300M, and 1M.  They were also first in the shot-put competition and high jump.  The ORR boys also ran well, taking first in the 2M, 50D, 1000M, 300M, and 1M races.  They also came in first for throwing shot-put.  Check out our photos below from the track meet.  Photos by Eric Tripoli.

By Eric Tripoli

Jane Taylor Chase

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Jane Taylor Chase, 84, of Mattapoisett passed away peacefully on  Friday December 28, 2012 at Tobey Hospital surrounded by her family.  She was wife of the late Richard E. Chase.

Born in Winthrop in 1928, she was the daughter of the late Charles H.  and Ruth (Raymond) Taylor. Jane and her family settled at Crescent  Beach in Mattapoisett where she enjoyed many happy years with family  until forced out by the 1938 hurricane after which they moved to the  center of Mattapoisett. She attended Center School and graduated from  Fairhaven High School in 1946. She studied art at Swain School of  Design, Rhode Island School of Design, and UMass Dartmouth. She worked  at C.F. Wing Company in New Bedford before marrying Richard in 1949.

Jane was an active member of the Mattapoisett Congregational Church.  Jane and Dick raised four children and became leaders of the youth  fellowship and active in Sunday school. Some of Jane?s fondest  memories were sailing Buzzards Bay with family and friends in their  beloved Herreshoff ketch Wanderer. Jane was an accomplished artist  working in many mediums. She designed and sold sailor?s valentines  with many of the shells she and Dick collected while wintering in  Marco Island.

Survivors include four children, Jeffrey R. Chase and his wife Deborah  J. Chase, Daniel W. Chase and his wife Melissa L. Chase, and Andrew J.  Chase and his girlfriend Tracy Delano, all of Mattapoisett, and  Cynthia J. Chase of Fairhaven; her sister Elizabeth Kudriavetz of  Carver; four grandchildren: Kendra, Brenden, Cory, and Nicole Chase;  two great-grandchildren, Hagen and Ella Chase; and numerous nieces and  nephews.

She was the sister of the late Barbara T. Joy.

Her Memorial Service will be held on Saturday January 5, 2013 at 10:30  AM at the Saunders-Dwyer Mattapoisett Home for Funerals, 50 County  Road, Route 6, Mattapoisett. Burial will follow in Cushing Cemetery.  Visiting hours will be held on Friday, January 4, 2013 from 5-7 PM. In  lieu of flowers remembrances may be made to Community Nurse and  Hospice Care, P.O. Box 751, Fairhaven MA 02719.

 

Mock Trial Season

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With so many students choosing law as the educational path they wish to take once they get to college, why not get started even sooner in high school?  For students interested in pursuing a career in law, mock trial has always been a viable option to gain valuable courtroom experience.  For the first time in the school’s history, Old Rochester Regional High School will field their first mock trial team.

“We have a lot of students who are interested in going into careers in criminal justice and law,” said ORR Law and Legal Teacher and Mock Trial Advisor Jeff White.  “I usually have about 60 students who are interested in those careers.  I think it’s great because it gives them great court room experience.”

Each year, the Massachuetts Bar Association (MBA) sponsors the Mock Trial program throughout the state.  The MBA designs several cases to distribute to each of the schools participating in the program.  Once the schools receive their case packets, they begin preparing for their trials.  The trials alternate back and forth between civil and criminal each year.

Each team is divided in half to represent both the prosecution and defense.  Students examine evidence, affidavits, voice reports, diaries and clinical reports.  From there, they create their arguments and cross-examinations.  This year, the ORR Mock Trial Team will travel to the Fall River District Court on January 22 to participate in their first competition.

“There are no juries in these trials, however, there is a Massachusetts Bar Association Lawyer who will role play the judge,” said Mike Linane, Co-Advisor of the Mock Trial Team.  “He is the one who will decide who wins the case.”

The judge will evaluate each of the students’ performances and will give them points based on the strength of their arguments.

While the Mock Trial Team is new to ORR, Linane has plenty of experience.  Prior to coming to ORR, he helped to coordinate the team at Melrose High School.  Now, he is guiding the 15 students at ORR through their first Mock Trial experience.

“I would like to see this program grow,” said Linane.  “This is a cool program where up to 100 kids can participate.  There’s no real limit.  We welcome students to come and try it out.”

For more information on the Mock Trial team, or to make a donation to help support travel costs, contact White or Linane at the high school.

By Katy Fitzpatrick

Showstoppers Jump, Shout and Shake

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Fingers were snapping and hands clapping at the free holiday concert hosted by the Showstoppers singing group on Saturday, December 29 at the Marion Music Hall.

Over a hundred people turned out to hear the voices of twenty-seven young people ages 5 through 19 sing a variety of traditional and non-traditional holiday songs such as Silver Bells, Santa Baby, Jingle Bell Rock, Let it Snow and many more.

Co-founder Kelly Zucco told the audience, that in addition to the Showstoppers singers that six ‘guests’ who were former Showstopper members were home from college for the holiday break and would sing.  The guests included Erin Morrissette, Stephen Lacombe, Ben and Emily Bunger, Johnny and Jillian Zucco and Holly Cardoza.

The students, who didn’t have a chance to rehearse were seen singing in the hallway prior to the concert.  They sang ‘Till the Season Comes Round Again’ and did a splendid job of it.  Jillian Zucco and Stephen Lacombe warmed the audience with a lighthearted version of ‘Baby It’s Cold Outside’.

“This is the final performance of the season,” said Director,Kelly Zucco.  “We had twenty-four performances, mostly at senior centers, nursing homes and at the local mall.”

The young singers are primarily from the tri-town, but some are from Acushnet, Westport, Wareham, Dartmouth and Fairhaven.  Singers audition to earn a place in the group.  Auditions are held in the fall, to coincide with the beginning of the school year.  Zucco founded the organization with her mother, Mary Lee Guillopte eleven years ago.

Many of the children sang as a duet, including 7 year olds Ayla Guillotte and Will Wikston who stole part of the show with their singing of ‘I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Clause.”  Wikston, in a black suit and white tie also wowed the audience with ‘All I Want for Christmas is My Two Front Teeth’.

A highlight of the show was the singing of ‘Mary Did You Know’, with a real infant held by a costumed Mary, with angels and wise men kneeling at her side and a standing angel behind her with wings spread.

Another hit was Sam Guillotte singing Frosty the Snowman.  Other holiday tunes included Up on the Housetop, I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas and I Got Nuttin’ for Christmas with the singers poking each other and shaking fingers at each other.

The Showstoppers organization is a non-profit, run by volunteers.  The group has been invited to sing at Disney World in Orlando, Florida in August of 2013.  The group is selling CD’s of their performances and Dinner for Two booklets.  They will be singing two songs at the opening performance of New Year’s Eve at New Bedford’s First Night celebration at 4:30 and again, for a full concert at 5:30 at the annex of the Zeiterion Theater.

By Joan Hartnett-Barry


Brian W. Morrison

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Brian W. Morrison, 44, of Mattapoisett died Monday December 24, 2012  suddenly at St. Luke’s Hospital in New Bedford. He was the husband of  Karen A. (Jones) Morrison.

Born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the son of Laura (Sylvester) Morrison  of Falmouth and the late Beverley Morrison, he lived in Falmouth for  most of his life and in Mattapoisett for the past five years.

Mr. Morrison was formerly employed as a truck driver.

He was part of the Melaleuca family.

Survivors include his wife; his mother; three sons, Corey W., Andrew  D., and Nathaniel E. Morrsion, all of Mattapoisett; and his siblings,  Aaron Morrison of Swansea, Shawn and Michelle Morrison, both of  Falmouth.

His Funeral Service will be held on Thursday January 3, 2013 at 10:30  AM at the Trinity Lutheran Church, 16 Temple Place, Fairhaven. Burial  will follow in the Massachusetts National Cemetery, Bourne. Visiting  hours will be on Wednesday January 2, 2103 from 4-8 PM at the  Saunders-Dwyer Mattapoisett Home for Funerals, 50 County Rd., Route 6,  Mattapoisett. For directions and guestbook, please visit www.saundersdwyer.com.

National Card Playing Day at Plumb Library

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On Friday, December 28, children of all ages gathered together at the Plumb Library in Rochester to play card games.  The games were played to honor National Card Playing Day, where towns and cities across the United States dedicate a few hours of their day to playing card games of all types.  Photos by Katy Fitzpatrick.

Old Colony Energy Upgrades Save Money

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The boom in energy efficiency technology has been steadily progressing despite the world’s resistance to upgrading to a greener standard.  It isn’t as easy as putting some solar panels on the roof or turning down the heat.  Municipalities, especially, have been hard-pressed to “go green” in an effort to save taxpayer dollars that could be diverted to other things.  For the Tri-Town, the age of the facilities is a big determining factor in how to update their energy systems.  The other factor is money.  While there are many municipal programs out there for towns to consider in order to get funding for such projects, the costs can still be high.

Then there is the case of Old Colony Regional Vocational Technical High School in Rochester.  The school, which was built in the 1970s, recently underwent a renovation of the climate control and infrastructure equipment.  The installation of a new roof-top heating and ventilation systems coupled with a high-efficiency boiler help maintain better control of the temperature of the building.  The school also installed more energy-efficient lighting to reduce the use of electricity.

There is even a solar panel array on the roof, which directly generates some electricity for the building.

“The 3.3 kilowatt photovoltaic array is used primarily for educational purposes. Power produced is fed directly to the main supply for use in the facility,” said Melanie Boulay Becker, a representative from Trane, the company that designed the renovations.  “The upgrades at Old Colony High School have cut their energy consumption by 50%,”

While the renovations to Old Colony were extensive, they were achieved without increasing taxes or tapping town coffers.

According to Boulay, the upgrades were paid for by a special tax-exempt municipal lease.  The money to pay for the lease is taken directly from the energy savings provided by the new equipment.  This style of “performance contract” allows public schools to use future operational and energy savings to fund these projects, rather than requiring the schools to pay a large amount up front.

By Eric Tripoli

Holiday Competition

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On the last day of school before holiday break 96 students of Old Rochester Regional High School competed in the annual Holiday Volleyball Tournament. 16 teams of six students each donned homemade costumes and picked team names. The teams were required to be equally split with three boys and three girls.

Only eight teams could make it to the finals. The final two teams came down to They Call Us     Nasty 2.0 and Diggie Smalls. They Call Us Nasty 2.0, an entirely senior team, was comprised of Quinn Henshaw, Evan Sylvia, Zachary Mathews, Brenna Maloney, Quinn Donovan, and Hannah Bouvette.

Diggie Smalls was made up of sophomore Jordan Menard, senior Nick Pacheco, sophomore Austin Salkind, sophomore Nicole Gifford, sophomore Kaleigh Goulart, and senior Hannah Walsh. In a crowd-pleasing battle for the 2013 title, Diggie Smalls came out victorious.

The high school’s gym was alive with the competitors and students fortunate enough to be able to get down to the tournament and cheer their classmates on. The air was thick with excitement and as it got down to the finals an edge of healthy competition settled in. Throughout the tournament, most competitors were really only in for the fun. When asked, most competitors only entered the competition for the fun, and that reflected in most of the playing. Conner Medeiros-Sweet, a senior and member of It’s All Good in the Hood, epitomized the atmosphere of the morning.

“I did the tournament because I have wanted to do it for years and this year I was able to do it with my friends, Fred Murolo, Mitch Midwood, Chloe Riley, Mikayla Demanche, and Abby Robinson. Our strategy was just to have fun, and just focus on making it to the finals,” he said.

While many teams kept the motto of “just having fun” close to heart, some teams were resolute in their “in it to win it” attitude. The contrast between teams made out to be an exciting morning for all students, whether on the court or in the stands.

By Jessica Correia

Leonel Pires, Jr.

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Leonel Pires, Jr., 87, of Mattapoisett, passed away Friday, December 14, 2012, peacefully after a brief illness. He was the former husband of the late Eleanor (Leach) Pires.

Born and raised in New Bedford, the son of the late Leonel and Maria Gloria (Linhares) Pires, he settled in Mattapoisett 46 years ago. He was a graduate of New Bedford High School and a communicant of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception Church in New Bedford.

Leo was the owner operator of Leo’s Riding School. He loved horses and all animals. Prior to running the riding school he had worked as the office manager for Linhares Construction Company. Leo also enjoyed fishing and guns, Country Music, watching Jeopardy, word games and puzzles.

He is survived by his two loving daughters, Kimberly Pires of Fairhaven and Jaydean Borges of New Bedford; two sisters, Laurinda Jauhola of California and Lilia P. Campos of New Bedford; a brother, Anibal Pires of New Hampshire; two grandsons, David E. Cope and Cody J. Nolan; a great granddaughter, Aubrey Cope and many nieces and nephews.

In accordance with his wishes he will be cremated and a Memorial Mass will be celebrated Saturday, December 29, 2012, at 9:00 AM, in Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception Church, in New Bedford. Interment will follow in St. John Cemetery, New Bedford.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the MSPCA Memorial/Tribute at ksantry@mspca.org.